Bill Nelson
|birth_place=Miami, Florida |death_date= |death_place= |residence=Orlando, Florida |spouse=Grace Cavert Nelson |children=Bill Nelson, Jr. Nan Ellen Nelson |alma_mater=Yale University (B.A.) University of Virginia School of Law (J.D.) |religion=Christian |website= |branch= United States Army |serviceyears=1965-1968, 1970-1971 (Reserve) 1968-1970 (Active Duty) |rank = Captain }} Clarence William "Bill" Nelson (born September 29, 1942) is the senior United States Senator from the state of Florida and a member of the Democratic Party. He is a former United States Representative and former Treasurer and Insurance Commissioner of Florida. In 1986, he became the second sitting member of the United States Congress to fly in space. In 1972, Nelson was elected to the Florida House of Representatives. He was re-elected in 1974 and 1976. Nelson was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1978. He served in the U.S. House from 1979 to 1991. In January 1986, he flew as a Payload Specialist on the Space Shuttle Columbia. After a failed gubernatorial race in 1990, he successfully ran for the office of Treasurer and Insurance Commissioner of Florida in 1994 and served for six years. In 2000, Nelson ran for U.S. Senate seat vacated by retiring Republican Senator Connie Mack. In the Senate he is generally considered a social moderate and economic liberal. He was re-elected in 2006 with 60 percent of the vote"Sen. Bill Nelson (D)". National Journal Almanac (National Journal Almanac). 2008-12-31. Retrieved 2012-02-09. and is seeking re-election in 2012. Personal life Nelson was born in Miami, the only child of Nannie Merle (née Nelson) and Clarence William Nelson."Senator Bill Nelson". Florida 4-H Hall of Fame. Retrieved 2009-12-15. He spent his youth in Melbourne, Florida, where he attended Melbourne High School."Biography". U.S. Senator Bill Nelson - Florida (official U.S. Senate website). Retrieved 2009-12-16. Nelson attended the University of Florida before transferring to Yale University. He subsequently received a law degree from the University of Virginia."Bill Nelson (D-Fla.)". WhoRunsGov.com. Retrieved 2009-12-15. In 1965, he joined the U.S. Army Reserve; he served on active duty from 1968 to 1970, attaining the rank of captain, and he remained in the Army until 1971. Nelson was admitted to the Florida bar in 1968, and began practicing law in Melbourne in 1970. In 1971, he worked as legislative assistant to Governor Reubin Askew. In 1972, Nelson married Grace Cavert. The couple has two adult children: Bill Nelson, Jr., and Nan Ellen Nelson."Florida's senior senator praises Martinez, stays quiet about possible candidates in 2010". U.S. Senator Bill Nelson - Florida (official U.S. Senate website). Retrieved 2009-12-16. He was baptized as a Baptist, and grew up attending Baptist and Episcopal churches. In 2005, he joined the First Presbyterian Church in Orlando.Stratton, Jim. "Nelson doesn't act like Christian, Harris says". [http://www.orlandosentinel.com/ Orlando Sentinel.] 2006-10-06. Retrieved 2010-03-28. Spaceflight In 1986, Nelson became the second sitting member of Congress (and the first member of the House) to travel into space. He went through NASA training with Senator Jake Garn of Utah. He was a Payload Specialist on 's STS-61-C mission from January 12 to 18, 1986. The primary objective of the mission was to deploy the Ku-1 communications satellite, second in a planned series of geosynchronous satellites owned and operated by RCA Americom. The deployment was successful. The flight also carried a large number of small experiments, including 13 GAS canisters devoted to investigations involving the effect of microgravity on materials processing, seed germination, chemical reactions, egg hatching, astronomy and atmospheric physics. Columbia landed at Edwards AFB at 5:59 a.m. PST, on January 18. Mission elapsed time was 6 days, 2 hours, 3 minutes, 51 seconds. It was the last successful Space Shuttle flight before the ''Challenger'' accident, as the disaster occurred only 10 days after Columbia's return. Political career Florida legislature In 1972, Nelson was elected to the Florida House of Representatives. He won re-election in 1974 and 1976."Bill Nelson". Washington Post:U.S. Congress Votes Database. Retrieved 2009-12-16. U.S. House of Representatives Nelson was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1978. He served in the U.S. House from 1979 to 1991. Gubernatorial campaign In 1990, Nelson ran unsuccessfully for the Democratic nomination for Governor of Florida. He lost to former U.S. Senator Lawton Chiles, who went on to win the general election. During the primary campaign, Nelson tried to make an issue out of Chiles' health and age, a strategy that backfired on him in a state with a large population of retirees and senior citizens. Treasurer and Insurance Commissioner In 1994 Nelson announced his intention to seek the office of Treasurer and Insurance Commissioner of Florida. He won the election with 52% of the vote over State Rep. Tim Ireland's 48%. In 1998, he again defeated Ireland for his reelection to the office. In 2000, Nelson resigned his post as Commissioner following his election to the U.S. Senate. U.S. Senate In 2000, Nelson ran as a Democrat for the U.S. Senate seat vacated by retiring Republican Senator Connie Mack. He won the election, defeating U.S. Representative Bill McCollum, who ran as the Republican candidate. Political Positions Nelson's votes have tended to be more liberal than conservative. He has received high ratings from left-of-center groups such as Americans for Democratic Action, and low ones from right-of-center groups such as the Eagle Forum and the Club for Growth. According to ratings by the National Journal, Nelson's votes have been liberal on economic matters, moderate on social issues, and liberal but close to the center on foreign policy."Interest Group Ratings: Senator Bill Nelson, Sr. (FL)". Project Vote Smart. Retrieved 2009-12-16. Nelson has called for greater bipartisanship and civility between left and right. “The finger pointing and hyper-partisanship has to stop,” he has said. “Democrats need to see tea partiers as something other than debt-limit hostage-taking Republicans. And Republicans need to see President Barack Obama and Democrats as something other than big-spending socialists....We’ve got to stop this attack madness. We have to bring civility back to the public square.... It’s time to stop the shouting and bickering and political attacks. It’s time to show the world that America can take care of business.” In November 2011 he told a conference: “People are so rigid, they are in their ideological boxes, they won't move and it is my way or the highway. The people of our country are fed up with this nonsense. I tell you I am fed up with it. It is frustrating.” Nelson has been especially vocal on the issue of minority voting rights and on funding for space exploration. A strong supporter of NASA, he flew on the space shuttle Columbia in 1986. The Progressive Patriots website gave Nelson a “progressive” score of 25/100. Central America Free Trade Agreement In 2005, Nelson was one of ten Democrats who voted in favor of the Dominican Republic – Central America Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA) on its 55-45 passage in the Senate;Nichols, John. "Democrats for CAFTA". The Beat (blog at the Nation). 2005-07-05. Retrieved 2009-12-16. Nelson's vote was cast despite opposition by special interests like the sugar lobby."Part 1 How Blunt Whipped CAFTA". American Crystal Sugar Company News Archive. 2005-09-06. Retrieved 2009-12-16. Estate tax On several occasions, Nelson has voted against his party to reduce or eliminate the estate tax,"Bill Nelson - Votes Against Party". Washington Post:U.S. Congress Votes Database. Retrieved 2009-12-16. notably in June 2006, when he was one of four Democrats voting for a failed (57-41) cloture motion on a bill to eliminate the tax.Andrews, Edmund L. "G.O.P. Fails in Attempt to Repeal Estate Tax". New York Times. 2006-06-09. Retrieved 2009-12-16. Withholding funding from the CIA In 2007, Nelson was the lone Democrat on the Senate Intelligence Committee to vote against an amendment to withhold funds for CIA use of harsh interrogation techniques on terrorism suspects. His vote, combined with those of all Republican members of the committee, killed the measure.Shane, Scott. "Senate Panel Questions C.I.A. Detentions". New York Times. 2007-06-01. Retrieved 2009-12-16. Healthcare In March 2010, Nelson voted for the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010, which passed and were signed into law by President Obama. A Mason-Dixon Florida poll indicated that the measure was opposed by a majority of those surveyed, and by nearly two-thirds of Florida voters aged 65 or older. The same poll showed Nelson's negative rating rising to 34%, from 16% at the time of his 2006 re-election.Cotterell, Bill. "Poll: Health-care plan, Nelson under fire in Florida". Tallahassee.com 2010-03-28. Retrieved 2010-03-30. However, a Gallup poll indicated that 79% of Democrats approved of the legislation, with only 40% of all adults opposing the legislation. Space exploration Nelson is seen as a major supporter of the space program. In 2010 he proposed creating as many as “five business enterprise zones as magnets for commercial space ventures.” “The move is expected to attract thousands of jobs to Florida’s 'Space Coast' area around NASA’s Kennedy Space Center and the Cape Canaveral Air Force Base.” In March 2010 Nelson complained that Obama had made a mistake in canceling NASA's Constellation program. On July 7, 2011, Tom Parkinson reported that Nelson had said that Congress “starved” the space program of funding for several years, but suggested that the situation was turning around and called on the Obama Administration to push for NASA funding. Don't Ask Don't Tell On December 18, 2010, Nelson voted in favor of the Don't Ask, Don't Tell Repeal Act of 2010. Congressional Term Limits Nelson does not support Congressional Term Limits, and agrees with constitutional scholars who argue that term limits would limit the prerogative of the voters." Debt ceiling Nelson has a mixed record on budgetary and business issues. In July 2011, Marc Caputo and Erika Bolstad of the Miami Herald noted that “Bill Nelson was against raising the debt ceiling before he was for it. And he was for it before he was against it.” 2006 re-election campaign Following the 2004 election, in which Republican George W. Bush was re-elected and the Republican party increased its majority in both the House and the Senate, Nelson was seen as vulnerable. He was a Democrat in a state that Bush had won, though by a margin of only five percentage points."For Democrats in red states, 2006 daunting". Washington Times. 2004-11-29. Retrieved 2009-12-22. Evangelical Christian activist James Dobson declared that such Democrats, including Nelson, would be "in the 'bull's-eye'" if they supported efforts to block Bush's judicial nominees;Kirkpatrick, David D. "Evangelical Leader Threatens to Use His Political Muscle Against Some Democrats". New York Times. 2005-01-01. Retrieved 2009-12-22. and Nelson's refusal to support efforts in Congress to intervene in the Terri Schiavo case was seen as "a great political issue" for a Republican opponent to use in mobilizing Christian conservatives against him.Allen, Mike, and Manuel Roig-Franzia. "Congress Steps In on Schiavo Case". Washington Post. 2005-03-20. Retrieved 2009-12-22. Florida governor Jeb Bush, precluded by term limits from seeking re-election in 2006, was suggested as an opponent who might secure Nelson's seat for the Republicans. Bush chose not to run for the seat. Katherine Harris, the former Florida Secretary of State and two-term U.S. representative, defeated three other candidates in the September 5 Republican primary. Nelson was unopposed for the Democratic nomination. Harris's role in the 2000 presidential election made her a polarizing figure. Many Florida Republicans were eager to reward her for her perceived party loyalty in the Bush-Gore election; many Florida Democrats were eager to vote against her for the same reason.Gibson, William E."Senate Race Centers on Images". Ft. Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel. 2006-10-20. Retrieved 2009-12-22. Harris's campaign was beset by difficulties: poor fundraising, a series of gaffes, and a high turnover of staff, including the loss of three campaign managers and of chief advisor Ed Rollins.Copeland, Libby. "Campaign Gone South". Washington Post. 1006-10-31. Retrieved 2009-12-22. In February, it was learned that Harris had received $32,000 in illegal campaign contributions from defense contractor Mitchell J. Wade.Babcock, Charles R. "Contractor Pleads Guilty to Corruption". Washington Post. 2006-02-25. Retrieved 2009-12-22. In April, a National Review editorial urged Harris to withdraw, arguing that she would unquestionably win the primary and lose the general election."A Time to be Wise". National Review editorial. 2006-04-10. Retrieved 2009-12-22.] In May, when the party found itself unable to recruit a candidate who could defeat Harris in the primary, many Republican activists admitted that the race was already lost.Kumar, Anita. "GOP can't elude Harris vs. Nelson".St. Petersburg Times. 2006-05-11. Retrieved 2009-12-22. Harris's campaign focused heavily on evangelical Christianity.Smith, Adam C. and Anita Kumar. "Harris puts her faith in religion". St. Petersburg Times. 2006-03-25. Retrieved 2009-12-22. In an August interview with Florida Baptist Witness, she declared: "If you're not electing Christians then in essence you are going to legislate sin""Katherine Harris". Florida Baptist Witness. 2006-08-22. Retrieved 2009-12-22. Nelson, meanwhile, focused on safe issues, portraying himself as a bipartisan centrist problem-solver. He obtained the endorsement of all 22 of Florida's daily newspapers.Clark, Lesley. "Nelson goes 22-0". Naked Politics (Miami Herald blog). 2006-10-30. Retrieved 2009-12-22. Harris failed to secure the endorsement of Jeb Bush, who publicly stated that she could not win; the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, which had supported her in her House campaigns, did not endorse her in this race.Kormanik, Beth. "Harris, Nelson tout testimonials". Florida Times-Union. 2006-10-31. Retrieved 2009-12-22. As the election approached, polls showed Harris trailing Nelson by 26 to 35 points. Nelson transferred about $16.5 million in campaign funds to other Democratic candidates,Gibson, William E. "Nelson Rolls To Second Term". Ft. Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel. 2006-11-08. Retrieved 2009-12-22. and won the election with 60.4% of the vote to Harris's 38.2%.Miller, Lorraine C. "Statistics of the Congressional Election of November 7, 2006". U.S. House of Representatives website. 2007-09-21. Retrieved 2009-12-22. 2012 re-election campaign In late May 2010 on the Talking Points blog, Brian Beutler reported that Nelson had “called on Obama...to shake up the arrangement of the cleanup and rescue operation by putting the military in charge.” In early June, CBS News reported that Nelson was “becoming increasingly frustrated with the chaos surrounding the cleanup.” Biden has called Nelson crucial to President Obama's chances for winning Florida in 2012. Several possible 2012 challengers have emerged, but the only one who is widely seen as a real threat is Connie Mack IV (the son of Nelson's direct predecessor in the Senate). In March 2011, Vice President Joe Biden was reported as having said that if Nelson lost in 2012, “it means President Obama and the Democratic presidential ticket won't win the key battleground state, either....'He's a truly, truly decent guy who has the absolute respect of his colleagues, and I've heard that from both sides of the aisle,' Biden said of his former Senate colleague.” Controversies On February 17, 2009, David D. Kirkpatrick wrote that Nelson was one of three lawmakers who “were returning campaign contributions from donors listed as employees of the PMA Group, a Washington lobbying firm whose founder is under investigation for purportedly funneling money through bogus donors.” During his 2006 Senate campaign, according to the Open Congress website, Nelson “was accused of taking $80,000 in illegal campaign contributions from Riscorp, Inc....The Riscorp scandal involved dozens of Florida state legislators and was among the largest scandals in recent Florida history.” In November 2011, Ahmed Bedier, an activist linked to CAIR and the Muslim Brotherhood, donated money to Nelson and co-hosted a fundraiser for him. Nelson's representatives later claimed that he “did not know about Bedier's relationship with CAIR” and that Bedier had exaggerated his closeness to the Senator. In November 2011 Marc Caputo of the Miami Herald wrote that the scandal over Bedier threatened the Jewish vote for Nelson, given that Bedier had called Israel a “terrorist state.” Caputo noted that while “Nelson has gone to great lengths to fashion himself as pro-Israel,” that wasn't enough for some conservative groups. Committee assignments Senator Nelson serves on the following committees in the 112th Congress. *'Committee on the Budget' *'Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation' **Subcommittee on Aviation Operations, Safety, and Security **Subcommittee on Communications, Technology, and the Internet **Subcommittee on Oceans, Atmosphere, Fisheries and Coast Guard **Subcommittee on Science and Space (Chairman) *'Committee on Finance' **Subcommittee on Energy, Natural Resources, and Infrastructure **Subcommittee on Fiscal Responsibility and Economic Growth (Chairman) **Subcommittee on International Trade, Customs, and Global Competitiveness **Subcommittee on Taxation and IRS Oversight *'Select Committee on Intelligence' *'Special Committee on Aging' Electoral history References External links *United States Senator Bill Nelson official U.S. Senate site *Nelson for US Senate official campaign site * *NASA Bill Nelson official NASA astronaut biography Category:1942 births Category:University of Florida alumni Category:University of Virginia School of Law alumni Category:American astronauts Category:American Episcopalians Category:Florida lawyers Category:Florida Democrats Category:Living people Category:Members of the Florida House of Representatives Category:Members of the United States House of Representatives from Florida Category:United States Army officers Category:United States Senators from Florida Category:Florida Blue Key initiates Category:Yale University alumni Category:Democratic Party United States Senators Category:University of Virginia alumni Category:State Treasurers of Florida bg:Уилям Нелсън cs:Clarence Nelson da:Bill Nelson de:Bill Nelson fr:Bill Nelson it:Bill Nelson la:Clarence Gulielmus Nelson nl:Bill Nelson ja:ビル・ネルソン no:Bill Nelson pl:Bill Nelson pt:Bill Nelson sk:Clarence William Nelson fi:Bill Nelson sv:Bill Nelson